In order to keep the floor of a building or the like clean, the periodical washing and polishing are needed therefor. Conventionally, there have been executed the washing and polishing by use of an automatic floor washing apparatus and a high-speed polisher.
In other words, dirt on the floor is removed by use of a washing apparatus, at first. The washing apparatus has a mechanism such as to rotate a pad or a brush at high speeds. FIGS. 3A and 3B are views which illustrate one example of the conventional washing apparatus. FIG. 3A is a front view and FIG. 3B is a plan view thereof, respectively. As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, a nonwoven coarse disc pad 3 is installed on a pad base 2 coupled to a motor 1. On the pad base 2, one or more holes 5 are provided for supplying rinsing water. To wash the floor 4, the pad is closely placed on the floor 4, and rotated at 200 to 300 rpm, while supplying rinsing water from the upper face of the pad base 2. Since the pad is coarse, the rinsing water is allowed to pass inside the pad freely through the holes 5 of the pad base, and enter between the floor and the pad. Then, when washing is completed, the floor is polished by use of a high speed polisher. The so-called buffing is executed to regain the luster thereof. The high-speed polisher uses a disc pad similar to the one for use of washing, but at much higher speeds of 1,500 to 2,500 rpm. Unlike washing, the buffing does not use rinsing water. It polishes the floor in the dry. As a result, much greater friction is obtainable than washing, thus producing an effect that the luster of the floor is regained by the application of such friction.
For the conventional floor washing, there is a problem that two individual machines should be used separately as described above. For the execution thereof, two operations, washing and buffing, should be carried out separately as a matter of course.
As means to solve this problem, it is conceivable that the buffing function is provided for a washing apparatus or, on the contrary, the washing function is provided for a polisher. However, since the pad used for a washing apparatus should be coarse, which exerts small friction, it does not provide any function good enough for buffing, making it impossible to regain the luster of the floor even after it is polished. If use of a fine pad is intended for obtaining large friction with the floor in order to produce an effect required for regaining the luster, while washing the floor, it becomes impossible to supply rinsing water between the pad and the floor, because the rinsing water cannot pass inside such fine pad.